Seth MacFarlane: ‘The Orville’ Will Be More ‘Star Trek’ Than ‘Futurama’

Last week we showed the first trailer and images for Seth MacFarlane’s new sci-fi comedy drama The Orville, which features a number of Star Trek vets (Jonathan Frakes, Robert Duncan McNeill, and Brannon Braga) behind the camera. The show has been described as a parody of science fiction and specifically Star Trek. MacFarlane is best known for his animated comedies Family Guy and American Dad, so it’s unsurprising that the Fox trailer focused on the funnny side of The Orville. But MacFarlane sought to clarify that The Orville is not just for laughs.

Speaking to Inside Edition, MacFarlane said, “It’s not Family Guy in space.” And he was more specific with AP, saying,

It probably has more in common with Star Trek than Futurama. It is an hour-long show so we have to tell a story…The show is being promoted leaning on the comedy – and we like the promo a lot – but I think people will be surprised that we are digging a little deeper. We are servicing the science fiction aspect as well.

I think it is going to surprise people that we do do our heavy lifting – or least we try to – with the actual work of writing thoughtful science fiction. It’s not really as much Galaxy Quest as it’s being billed as. We’re digging a little deeper.

Bringing back sci-fi allegory and optimism

And MacFarlane again referred to Star Trek when talking about how he hopes to tell allegorical stories with The Orville:

I was a big fan of shows like The Twilight Zone and Star Trek. The real allegorical sci-fi that was kind of mad about stuff and sought to tell a story or posit a social theory through its characters and through this fictitious world. So we are trying to service that in this show as well.

He also seems to be specifically talking about Star Trek: The Next Generation when discussing a more optimistic tone for The Orville:

The 90s was kind of a heyday for thoughtful sci-fi to me. Everything we were kind of fed was utopian and aspirational and now all we are getting is The Hunger Games. There is an attempt to infuse a lot of that into this show. And hopefully make it funny along the way.

Showing off the Orville model

Like a lot of less modern sci-fi, The Orville is using physical models in addition to CGI effects. MacFarlane has been showing off the filming model of the Orville, which was made by Oscar-winner (and Star Trek vet) Robert Legato.

Model for the U.S.S. Orville (Twitter/SethMacFarlane)

Model for the U.S.S. Orville (Twitter/SethMacFarlane)

Model for the U.S.S. Orville (Twitter/SethMacFarlane)

MacFarlane explained the decision to go old school with the models (along with CGI).

We use both in the series. But a library of practical model shots always makes it more real because it’s actual light hitting actual surface https://t.co/9F4cP58b1y

So far I haven’t seen anything I recognize as comedy, at least it didn’t make me laugh. This is clearly the same approach as A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST, yet MacFarlane doesn’t mention that stinker at all. I disagree with his efforts to belittle GALAXY QUEST as pure comedy with no substance — that movie had a clear and serious message as well as a lot of heart. And the comedy wasn’t just blatant observational humor. It sure as heck had higher and quality actors, and production values. So far I’ve not seen anything that doesn’t suggest this won’t be yet another sophomoric effort from MacFarlane, masquerading as something more important.

May 22, 2017 11:32 am

Jerry

Cadet, it is interesting to me that you can separate STD from other star trek shows, defending it so vigorously while attacking anyone who dares judge the show without actually seeing an episode, yet do the same thing to this show. You are judging Orville based on his past work that is completely unrelated to this specific show. How can you be on both sides of an issue.

May 22, 2017 12:25 pm

Cerrito

And we are talking about the guy that produced Cosmos “2”.. so he can be very serius and deal with really important issues. Hope this serie goes well.

May 22, 2017 2:02 pm

Harry Plinkett

Uh oh you just logically spanked Curious George. Children like him need it once in a while, good job.

May 22, 2017 2:15 pm

Curious Cadet

@Jerry — Apples and oranges.

May 22, 2017 5:34 pm

bobtheaxolotl

To be fair, Star Trek has a significantly better track record than Seth MacFarlane. It’s far from perfect, but even the poorer shows managed to produce some thoughtful, intelligent episodes from time to time. Family Guy has moments of clarity and and depth, but they’re not as common as lazy, formulaic episodes. American Dad is just terrible, as was The Cleveland Show, the Ted movies, and A Million Ways to Die in the West. That being said, it’s no guarantee that Discovery (Can we please not call it STD?) will be a success, or that this show will be a failure. MacFarlane is a huge Trek fan (he was even in Enterprise), and I’m willing to give this show a chance. The humor didn’t all pan out in the trailer for me, but I’m encouraged by the effort put into the show, with high production values, including a physical model for the ship. I’m not sure where they’re getting the “drama” notions from. There were none in the trailer that I could see. On another note, if they’re claiming to “go a bit deeper” than Galaxy Quest, they really need to do a lot of work to live up to that. Despite not being actually being a Star Trek movie, Galaxy Quest is one of the best Star Trek movies. I’m not sure I’d be so keen to announce those are the shoes I intend to fill, if I were making a show like this. I’m also excited to see… Read more »

June 6, 2017 3:48 pm

Bradley Fried

You maybe want to see more than a trailer before you pass judgement oh wise one?

@danielcw — It’s all MacFarlane’s. He’s the executive producer and showrunner, and “editor-in-chief”. CITY ON THE EDGE OF FOREVER was written by an award winning SciFi writer, yet the final episode resembles little of the original manuscript. In the case of TOS, it turned out for the best. In the case of ORVILLE, MacFarlane will likewise put his stamp on it.

May 22, 2017 5:40 pm

danielcw

MacFarlane was not the showrunner of Family Guy since it came back (season 4, over a decade ago), and he never ran any of the other shows. He is one Executive Producer, not the executive producer.
The showrunner at the time of Family Guy’s TNG episode is the same guy who worte Where No Fan Has Gone Before, David A. Goodman

How could one person be the major creative force behind 3 TV shows with up to 66 episodes per year, while also trying to get new shows of the ground and directing movies?

Shows like Family Guy are collaborative efforts.
Listen to the audio commentaries and behind the scenes features of Family Guy, or Futurama for example.

Star Trek on the other often had writers work on their own.
For example, when Manny Coto worked on 24 after Enterprise, he noted in an interview how different or more collaborative 24’s writers room is.

May 22, 2017 6:45 pm

Curious Cadet

@danielcw — he doesn’t have to be the major creative force. He just has to “give notes”. All shows are collaborative efforts. There are writers rooms on all of them. Stories are assigned, written, and then they are worked by the room, assigned, re-written by other writers, and then fine-tuned by the show runner and executive producers. Often final story credit is assigned, sometimes as randomly as who’s next on the WGA roster. EPs like MacFarlane get to chose which episodes of their many series they get involved with — and since Star Trek is close to his heart, it’s one he would presumably have had a lot of input into.

May 22, 2017 9:30 pm

madtrekfanuk

Thank you Seth MacFarlane for doing what I wish Trek would do, bring back proper studio shooting models, CGI just cannot compare when you look at the beauty shots of the refit Constitution class Enterprise from TMP…

May 22, 2017 12:13 pm

Driver

Was there no room for Redenbacher on the hull?

May 22, 2017 12:19 pm

Captain Dunsel

Darn Wright there wasn’t!

May 23, 2017 3:16 am

Disinvited

Captain Dunsel,

Who is Darn Wright,–Robin’s sister?–and why are you talking like Yoda?

May 23, 2017 6:26 pm

Captain Dunsel

A mender of socks he was. Help you find him I will!

May 24, 2017 5:17 pm

krik semaj

I rarely post here. I always get annoyed with the commentary.
Trek fans (most of them) are the biggest group of whining, nit picking, complaining, “fans” in the entertainment universe. Every new movie or series is greeted with disdain and doom – Including this new trekesque show. I have been watching TOS and every other incarnation of the show since day 1 (I’m 58 ). Every version had the good, the bad, and the ugly episodes. Same with the movies. The fact is that McFarlane is a very talented and diverse entertainer (and a HUGE Trek fan). Agreed, 6 million ways was not that good. Why would you expect him to mention it? It was a western. He also didn’t talk about COSMOS which he single handedly got produced, but I suppose that doesn’t count because it was not starring him. Lighten up Trekkies, Orville might be good. And by the way Family guy is sophomoric, but always has moments of sheer brilliance in most episodes.

Couldn’t have said it better myself. To paraphrase Stewie at the end of “Not All Dogs Go to Heaven”, Star Trek fans are *exhausting*.

May 22, 2017 12:42 pm

Danpaine

Some of us should probably hop on over to a Family Guy fan site – I imagine the discourse is much more positive.

May 22, 2017 12:47 pm

Harry Plinkett

Not to mention, probably a lot less anal. Some of these Trek “fans” are so uptight you’d need a tractor to drag a needle outta their butts.

May 22, 2017 2:20 pm

B Kramer

Bones, prepare tractor for needle removal.

May 23, 2017 4:26 am

Snapspine

I’m a doctor, not a farmer.

May 25, 2017 11:40 am

Cerrito

Agree with you 100%.

May 22, 2017 2:02 pm

Curious Cadet

@Krik — you realize that MacFarlane did not write COSMOS? Nor did he direct it, or star in it — and yes that matters because the star is half the reason an audience watches, not to mention has the ability to shape the script. And he most certainly didn’t “single handedly” produce it.

May 22, 2017 5:55 pm

danielcw

MacFarlane was the driving force in getting the studio and network to make the show.

MacFarlane did not write or direct Cosmos, he actually does not write and direct much.

> not to mention has the ability to shape the script
A star on TV usually has not that power, but of course their are counter examples. Those stars usually become also producers. How involved MacFarlane is in the day-to-day creative business of the show remains to be seen.

May 22, 2017 6:51 pm

Curious Cadet

@danielcw — MacFarlane’s clout at the studio is in the money he makes for them. Getting the studio to produce a pet project is not a major leap for someone like him. You confirmed my point either way, that Cosmos has nothing to do with Star Trek, in that he does not write, direct, or act in cosmos, whereas he’s doing that in ORVILLE, and wore many of those hats in A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST which is why it’s relevant, and COSMOS is not — add to that, COSMOS was a pre existing property, created by someone else, with specific expectations. ‘WEST Was all MacFarlane, and so is ORVILLE.

I really wanted to like this, but I hated the trailer. Pee jokes? Joking about having killed somebody’s father? Um, yeah.

Looks like this isn’t going to be to my taste. Best of luck to them, though.

May 22, 2017 1:13 pm

Jeph

Uh, in a world of sci-fi rayguns with stun settings, what makes you think the father was killed?

May 23, 2017 12:28 pm

Stanky M

Looking forward to this. Discovery-not really.

May 22, 2017 3:23 pm

DrewM

The question is, will this show hurt Discovery?

May 22, 2017 3:57 pm

Curious Cadet

@DrewM — It won’t.

May 22, 2017 5:48 pm

danielcw

How could it?

May 22, 2017 7:07 pm

Jack D

Why is that a question?

May 23, 2017 5:12 am

PEB

Discovery doesn’t have a time slot or traditional tv norms to follow when it comes to “being hurt” by other scifi shows. If anything, Orville is the one that has to deal with this more.

May 23, 2017 6:30 am

Disinvited

PEB,

Re: Discovery doesn’t have a time slot

Oh yes it does. As part of CBS ALL ACCESS it is being live streamed at a regularly slotted time, and, as I have already pointed out to you before, it is being shown in Canada at a regularly scheduled time.

May 23, 2017 6:12 pm

PEB

…but you can STREAM it. It’s not primetime tv, there’s a huge difference.

May 24, 2017 6:15 am

Disinvited

PEB,

Re: It’s not primetime tv…

Neither were the first seasons of NG and DS9 which can now also be streamed. The difference does not appear to be as HUGE for STAR TREK productions as you are making it out to be? Unless, you consider DISCOVERY’s first episode airing primetime on CBS TV to be somehow HUGELY significant?

May 24, 2017 7:23 am

albatrosity

It could hurt DSC in one very important way — if Orville does somehow miraculously out-Trek DSC and ends up being a better show, then people will never stop talking about how official Star Trek isn’t even up to the standards of Fake Trek Orville.

May 23, 2017 11:51 am

TUP

Non Trek cannot out-Trek Trek. Its a silly comparison. Was Galaxy Quest a better film than Star Trek V? Maybe. But it wasnt better Trek. It wasnt Trek at all.

We’re reaching pretty hard to crap on Discovery which is, by the way, Star Trek. I mean, I suppose you guys could warp around the sun and go back in time and convince Moonves not to create Discovery and then we can all celebrate Orville while lamenting the fact it isnt actually Star Trek.

I’m all for DSC believe me. I’m just saying that if Orville outshines DSC then it will prove that the actual showrunners of Trek have no idea what to do with it.

May 24, 2017 7:16 pm

Greg

There are two answers to this question:

1) Time will tell. STD is a hot mess all on it’s own.

2) I sure as hell hope it hurts it and teaches CBS a lesson in respect for the fans.

May 27, 2017 6:23 pm

Schultz

MacFarlane doesn’t need to sell this to me. I’ll watch it! I liked the trailer, and I’ll give it a chance. And remember, this is the guy who gave us “Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey”—I’ll be forever grateful for this wonderful series. That show made a whole year for me! If you’ve seen that series, and if you dared *feel* that series, then you’ll know that “The Orville” can’t be a bad thing. He’s already proven he’s “one of us”, so I’m pretty sure “The Orville” will be decent at the very least. (By the way: I don’t care about the humor, I care about stories, and when he says that they’ll be “digging a little deeper”, I’m all ears.) And the fact that he’s (allegedly?) belittleing “Galaxy Quest”, is just because Trek fans are comparing “The Orville” to that film. He’s just reacting to the dimwits. But in reality, “The Orville” is based (if it’s based on anything at all) on “Other Space”, not on “Galaxy Quest”. It’s a variation on a theme, for sure, on many themes, and one of them is Star Trek, but if one of the other themes is “Other Space”, then hell yeah, bring it on! Just be sure to please please, Mr. MacFarlane, cast Soni & Rous in one episode of season 2. :)

May 22, 2017 4:18 pm

Curious Cadet

@Schultz — you realize that MacFarlane did not write COSMOS? Nor did he direct it, or star in it. And GALAXY QUEST is going to be a better film all the way around — it’s insulting that he’s even mentioning his project in the same breath.

May 22, 2017 5:47 pm

Schultz

And blammo, you’ve proven my point. Wonderful.

May 22, 2017 6:30 pm

Curious Cadet

@Schultz — whatever that is …

May 22, 2017 9:37 pm

DSWynne

CC, either the show will be good or it won’t. We’ll see when it airs. Then, when STD is shown, will see if that show will be good or not. Each program should be judge on their own merits. But I wills say this: if The Oreville is a better show, blame CBS for not taking up MacFarlane on his Star Trek show proposal. They are the ones who’ve been dragging their feet for years now.

May 23, 2017 10:08 pm

THX-1138

You’re doing exactly what you accuse others of doing in regards to Discovery.

May 24, 2017 10:52 am

Cygnus-X1

So far, Orville is worlds ahead of DSC in terms of compelling promotion. From Orville, we’ve gotten (1) a trailer that gives us an interesting premise for the show, (2) interesting dynamics between some of the main characters and a few laughs along the way. Added to the aforesaid, this news release teases us with some genuinely interesting concepts that are, frankly, the most Trekgasm-inducing stuff to be pitched since the ENT premise was introduced (or, perhaps, since the high hopes of the build-up to ST09). As of right now, the choice between DSC and Orville ain’t no choice at all. Orville looks really interesting and entertaining, while DSC is just a big, well-polished blank slate. And, just to beat this horse good and dead, Seth MacFarlane is promoting his show like a thoughtful, intelligent person. Or, to put it another way, like Star Trek used to be. This all may change, but as of this right now, Orville has more Trek bona fides than DSC. I mean, it’s not even close.

May 22, 2017 4:46 pm

TUP

The Orville trailer struck me as “not as bad as I expected” which is probably a testament to my lowered expectations from hearing about the concept. The Discovery trailer struck me as “better than expected”. Which is probably for the same reasons.

Im not sure why there is such comparison. Shall we compare Discovery to Orange is the New Black? Or Orville to The Walking Dead? As a Trek-inspired comedy, which was done many times on Family Guy, I get it.

But using Orville as the means to criticize Discovery just seems irrelevant to me. You can like both. or dislike both. Or one or the other.

Seems like a concerted effort to find the high points of Orville and compare them to perceived low points of Discovery. Especially in being critical over Discovery’s trailer not revealing much which might be by design.

Cyg, you’re one of the very finest posters here. But are you biased towards negativity to Star Trek rather then being, at least, neutral? Keeping in mind, no series or film will ever be exactly what you or I or anyone else wants since its not made superficially for either of us.

I see nothing but positives from the Discovery trailer. if the complaint is ‘gee they didnt tell us enough’, how is that a criticism? its a first look trailer. If they chose to hold back, then it means their trailer was very successful, no?

May 23, 2017 12:24 pm

Cygnus-X1

TUP

Because I want to like DSC. I want to feel excited about it. When I see the Orville promotional materials, my honest reaction is, “I wish DSC were doing this.” So, that’s what I write. I’m disappointed that DSC thus far has given me no reason to feel excited about the show. I’m hoping that changes. I believe that DSC promotion would be more compelling if it took some lessons from the Orville promotion.

May 23, 2017 1:53 pm

Vokar

Looks more Star Trek than Star Trek! :)

PS: Physical spacecraft models? I’m in!

May 22, 2017 5:37 pm

Cervantes

By Grabthar’s hammer, I’ve got to say that this third-rate rip-off of the excellent ‘Galaxy Quest’ movie concept looks like it’s gonna be utter drivel. The supposedly ‘jokey’ dialogue in the trailer fell flat in every single instance, due to consistently bad line delivery from all involved. Perhaps it will end up as one of those things that’s looked upon as being ‘so bad that’s it’s good’ eventually, but I reckon it will just be ‘plain bad’.

It’s a real pity that we didn’t get a small handful of actual ‘TV show’ episodes involving the original ‘GQ’ cast previously, as that could have turned out to be something worth watching. But I see nothing worthwhile in this particular effort however, and it looks to be totally lacking the kind of knowing fun that ‘GQ’ had in droves.

Ironically, the ‘Orville’ spacecraft effect shots seem better than some of the spacecraft effects previewed for the actual STAR TREK DISCOVERY show! But even the design of the ‘Orville’ is pretty uninspired, and a poor-man’s version of ‘Galaxy Quest’s superior-looking ‘Protector’.

I foresee some unhelpful comparisons in the run-up to the new TREK show, unfortunately.

May 22, 2017 5:54 pm

Schultz

It’s got nothing to do with “Galaxy Quest”. “The Orville” is a satire of Star Trek (and maybe more), while “Galaxy Quest” is a satire of Star Trek fan culture.

May 22, 2017 6:41 pm

Thorny

No, it was much more than that, most visibly with the Shatner/Nimoy (Nesmith/Dane) rivalry and Shatner’s (Nesmith’s) perceived ego-centrism. There were also tons of in-jokes about the Star Trek universe itself (Gwen: “whoever wrote this episode should DIE!!!!”)

May 22, 2017 9:05 pm

albatrosity

GC did such a brilliant job of not just satirizing Trek but completely deconstructing it, that it’s the reason new Trek wouldn’t stand a chance with modern audiences if it looked the same way it did in the past.

May 23, 2017 11:53 am

richpit

I thought the trailer was great and I’m totally looking forward to The Orville. It looks like it’ll be fun and entertaining. They’ve given us a FULL trailer and an actual premiere date.

On the other hand, we’ve seen very little from STD. Admittedly, the STD trailer looked OK, but it didn’t WOW me or really make me eager to see the show.

May 22, 2017 6:44 pm

AJfromMoscow

“Serious” MacFarlane is far less interesting than “funny” MacFarlane, and he is not Teflon-coated-for-success, as proven by One Million Ways to Die in the West and The Cleveland Show. Given his love for Trek (see Ted 2), he would do well to keep Trek veterans close if he wants to catch the vibe of ’80s and ’90s Trek at its best, but he needs to really decide what the show actually is supposed to be about. 2017 hip cultural references get old quickly, and many of us Trekkers will squee and laugh at all the tributes and endless references to our favorite franchise, but that and $2.50 ‘just gets you on the bus,’ as they say. It needs to resonate on its own to be successful.

May 22, 2017 11:59 pm

Curious Cadet

Your reference to TED 2 more or less says it all. While TED was a hit, both critically and financially, his second attempt to go back to the trough, TED 2, missed the mark so badly it didn’t even resonate with the audience. Nevertheless, MacFarlane is planning a weekly hour-long sci-fi parody in which they’ll have to continually come up with fresh ideas to lampoon. While I’m looking forward to see what they do with the concept, I have little doubt that this will end up like every other MacFarlane-driven production sooner or later.

May 23, 2017 11:00 am

Mikey1701

The trailer was not exactly hilarious, but i’m going to go into this with an open mind.

May 23, 2017 2:49 am

Captain Dunsel

So, if Seth MacFarlane is a fan, and “The Orville” is an hour-long homage to Star Trek, and MacFarlane and Rob Legato and Penny Johnson Jerald are all professional talent who worked on “real” Trek, and they’re doing this for profit – aren’t we running afoul of Paramount’s “fan film rules” about 7 ways to Sunday?
“Shields Up! Lawyers on our Six!!!”

May 23, 2017 3:21 am

PiperKev

That makes absolutely no sense. “The Orville” ISN’T a fan film!

May 23, 2017 3:58 am

Captain Dunsel

Ummm… I was mocking Paramount.

May 23, 2017 9:57 am

Jack S.

Note that Galaxy Quest producers were terrified of getting sued by Paramount for stealing from Star Trek.

May 23, 2017 12:23 pm

Curious Cadet

@Jack — I suspect that CBS is keeping a close eye on this. Parody is a tricky thing in this day and age. FAMILY GUY has had its fair share of lawsuits over it. There’s a Supreme Court decision that guides productions, and has an ambiguous line as to what constitutes borrowing too much to communicate the parody. Parts of this look like they have taken too much. We shall see.

May 23, 2017 2:25 pm

Captain Dunsel

Re: “…an ambiguous line as to what constitutes borrowing too much to communicate the parody.”

To borrow from Justice Stewart Potter’s concurring opinion in (Jacobellis v. Ohio), “I shall not today attempt further to define[it], but[…]I know it when I see it.”

This is absolutely FALSE. Paramount owns GALAXY QUEST, both the film and TV productions. You are claiming Paramount was terrified of suing ITSELF.

May 23, 2017 6:22 pm

Disinvited

Jack S.,

Re: Note that Galaxy Quest producers were terrified of getting sued by Paramount

Trying to clear the cobwebs, I researched this and the director of the film,
Dean Parisot, said that the studio, DREAMWORKS, which Paramount’s parent VIACOM bought in 2005, was afraid of STAR TREK similarities and issued dicta demanding changes that he and the producers ignored.

So it was the studio’s fear and NOT the producers. And my apologies for misremembering the DREAMWORKS/PARAMOUNT’S partnership/acquisition as being in effect back then. But what I said holds true for the GALAXY QUEST TV show producers as PARAMOUNT now owns GALAXY QUEST.

May 23, 2017 7:27 pm

Dingo

I’ll say it again: This site’s comments section is filled with people who aren’t really fans of the genre and just look for reasons to complain and condemn.

May 23, 2017 4:52 am

Disinvited

Dingo,

Re: … complain and condemn.

You mean as opposed to the “share and enjoy” that Douglas Adams’ lampooned?

May 23, 2017 7:35 pm

DataMat

Off topic I know.

But islamic terror has struck again in England and, boy does it put life into perspective when all these horrible attacks keep happening. The world is deeply troubled. I think all of us trekkies and trekkers would join with me in condemning these senseless killings. We need Star Trek and its ideals envisaged by Mr Roddenberry more than ever!

May 23, 2017 4:58 am

KAPT CHRUNCH

I hope it’s good!. Seth MacFarlane is so hit/miss outside Family Guy. He produced the 2nd COSMOS which was very good..but thanks to Neil deGrasse Tyson. That western he made was aweful! Sci Fi parodies really never do it for me. I like humor in SciFi.. Guardians of the Galaxy has been the best I’ve seen recently. Seth’s love of Trek, will hopefully help this endeavor soar above. I was really hoping he would make versions of FAMILY GUY TREK movies like they did for EP 4, 5, and 6. The Family Guy Trilogy is awesome!

May 23, 2017 5:02 am

Curious Cadet

I actually like FAMILY GUY. Sometimes it can get tedious, and if I miss an episode, I don’t have any great desire to ensure I ever do. It’s fun, brainless, entertainment. Occasionally there are some really good episodes, and MacFarlane’s interest in sci-fi often offers some really fun episodes involving same for me. But his track record on FG isn’t that great either. I’ve seen a lot of episodes that were just OK, and few that were plain bad. What I’ve seen from MacFarlane is a tendency to turn to the worst kind of exploitation when finding himself in a creative corner. With THE ORVILLE, it’s not like there’s some new paradigm at play, as there is with DISC. It’s pretty clear, if not from the trailer alone, that we’re going to get a heavy dose of MacFarlane’s ideas of creativity in this from the writing, producing, acting, and even directing. There’s likely to be very little here we’ve never seen before.

May 23, 2017 10:43 am

jonboc

More like Star Trek? Hey, if I can’t get something that really feels like Star Trek from Star Trek, I’ll take it wherever I can find it. Having said that, this doesn’t look so good. lol But props for building a physical model. Hopefully he is a big enough fan and filmmaker to understand what makes TOS tick and parlay that into a fun show rather than just hit the broad strokes for gags that were tired 20 years ago. (redshirts, weird aliens, scrambled transporter accidents, etc)

May 23, 2017 5:18 am

PEB

I wish him well and for those who don’t decide to give Discovery a chance (for whatever reason) I hope this keeps you happy – but personally outside of Family guy and other animated ventures, I just don’t find Seth’s live-action humor funny and didn’t find the trailer to be funny. I love the exterior look of the Orville and LOVE that a show is using practical models to film but yeah… Like I said before, hope this at least gives more options to fans who are (again, for whatever reason) split on Trek.

May 23, 2017 6:28 am

BringBackKirkPrime

For all we know, it may be more Star Trek than Discovery. Time will tell on that.

May 23, 2017 7:11 am

Danpaine

I’ll be interested to see about that myself…

May 23, 2017 7:37 am

Thomas W.

Indeed. Ten years before Kirk was a bad idea. A prequel needs more distance. What about “1000 years before Kirk”. Something with knights, dragons, white walkers and sex. Featuring William Shatner as an ancestor of Kirk: the fat, drunk king. That could be a real success!

May 23, 2017 7:59 am

albatrosity

If it is, DSC is doomed. But I’m confident DSC will stand on its own. Can you imagine the embarrassment if it doesn’t?

As I recall, FOX did the same with Firefly. They pushed comedy in the ads. When the first ep aired (which wasn’t the pilot) viewers didn’t know what they were watching.

May 23, 2017 8:59 am

bassmaster22

“Whining” is latin for the sound people make when not agreeing with you, apparently. That said, it’s nice to see a trailer that doesn’t involve two minutes of people looking confused and upset which is probably 90% of all trailers these days. Star Trek was built on being somewhat campy, lest you forget. So, if you want BSG or Star Wars, go watch them.

I wonder why the “wait and see” on Discovery are so quick to rush to judgement on this show. Interesting.

May 23, 2017 10:29 am

Curious Cadet

@bassmaster22 — I disagree that anyone ever intentionally built Trek on “on being somewhat campy”. The Cage is all the proof you need against that argument.

I”m not one of those people that hate McFarlane. Talented, creative guy. But, I just don’t see how we can say it’s not a comedy when we milk a scene about a creatures’s bathroom habits for many lingering moments in a very Family Guy type of way. I’m frankly astonished that he got this on the air. Can’t believe the networks would do anything like this. We’ll see. I’ll try and watch it. Hope it’s good.

May 23, 2017 12:11 pm

ADeweyan

Well, I have to be a little skeptical of this. I love MacFarlane (loved A Million Ways to Die in the West, for instance), but the plan of trying to balance humor and thoughtful science fiction seems like a very hard thing to get right. It seems you’re likely to end up either with funny content that only pays lip-service to real science fiction ideas, or genuine science fiction with half-hearted humor pasted onto it.

They probably SHOULD be looking to Galaxy Quest as a model — it did successful present some thoughtful science fiction ideas while also being genuinely funny.

Still, I’m hoping for the best — it would be awesome if it could be pulled off.

May 23, 2017 12:50 pm

Will

This show could possibly be closer to the Star Trek I wish CBS would give me than Discovery if the “heavy” stuff is any good. Fingers crossed. I already like the teaser for The Orville more than anything I’ve seen of Discovery.

May 23, 2017 8:58 pm

Cmd.Bremmon

I think it speaks a lot when ‘The Orville’ looks very ST:TNG. Is it TNG TNG? I think this is a fair game – TNG fans get their show (utopia, crew interaction, holodeck, in your face comedy), TOS fans get Discovery (action, adventure, frontier, situational comedy).

May 24, 2017 7:26 am

THX-1138

You had me at “physical studio model”. I’d watch the show purely based on that. I’ll also tune in because I will give it a chance. I’m definitely not a Family Guy fan, and I don’t go in for too much of MacFarlane’s sense of humor (at least how it’s presented on shows he is associated with). Hey, at least it’s on TV.

May 24, 2017 10:49 am

Shatner\'s Bassoon

Sounds wonderful. Seth is a true TNG fan and understands what made that show so great. I hope he pulls this off.

May 24, 2017 3:30 pm

I am not Herbert

orville looks cool =)

May 24, 2017 9:21 pm

I am not Herbert

thanks for accepting my comment, and thanks for making an orville category =)

i think seth-trek is going to be good! =)

May 24, 2017 9:43 pm

Ricardo Cantoral

I have no faith because Seth MacFarlane knows nothing about writing characters. He’s a third rate Mel Brooks.

May 25, 2017 6:15 am

gingerly

Seth’s humor seems to be all about those member berries.

May 26, 2017 1:18 pm

Greg

I’ve been wondering what might happen if a Federation Away Team/Landing Party beamed down to a planet of Trump voters…now I know. *evil grin*

May 27, 2017 6:30 pm

Trekboi

Dispite my Bitching, I am trying not to give up on ST:DIS but this is looking like it may be more Star Trek than… Star Trek.

June 1, 2017 6:02 am

I am not Herbert

…it’ll probably (and hopefully) be more star trek than discovery! =D

June 7, 2017 12:50 am

Commonsense

One, it looks painfully unfunny.

Two, it looks like McFarlane played Sierra’s Space Quest V as a kid and ripped off most of the premise and even the design of the bridge.